This brief guide is intended as an introduction to
archives for congregational archivists and archives
committees. It can help start a congregational archives, but
may not answer every question that arises. Additional
assistance is available from the ELCA churchwide archives,
from your ELCA synodical/regional archives, or from the
professional organizations listed at the end of this guide.

The archives of a congregation contains the primary,
documentary evidence that is needed to identify its past.
Today, the documents that provide evidence of the past are
produced in a number of formats, from traditional paper to
computer disk. All of these materials require protection and
preservation from physical deterioration, to prevent the
historical loss that would occur if they were ignored or
forgotten.

Archives have been called the collective memory of an
organization. In order to preserve the entire history of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, well maintained and
accessible archives are needed in each congregation.
Congregational archives stand together with the other
archives of the whole church as a resource for American
Lutheran history and as evidence for the wider history of
Christian life and mission in the world.

The primary responsibility for a congregational archives
belongs to the congregation. Specific responsibility for
maintaining the records of the congregation belongs with the
pastor and others involved in the creation of congregational
records. Churchwide and synodical archivists can only assume
limited responsibility, mainly as advisors, for
congregational archives.

The ELCA's model constitution for congregations provides
for committees to be established as needed. To administer
parish archives, to assist the pastor, to oversee and
perhaps to conduct some archival work of the congregation,
it might be useful to appoint an archives committee. This
group, directly responsible to the Congregation Council and
pastor, should be primarily concerned with providing
continuous care of records as they move from active to
archival status. The committee should develop policies
regarding the archives, particularly on such issues as
collection development and access to information. The
committee also should learn about archival administration
and seek training in archival methods whenever possible.
Archival work carried out by the archives committee should
be performed in full cooperation with the pastor and others
who create records of the congregation.

For some congregations, in addition to an archives
committee, an archivist could be appointed. He or she would
be primarily concerned with collecting and appraising,
preserving and protecting, arranging and describing and
making accessible original documents and records of the
congregation. An archivist is not necessarily the historian
or interpreter of the congregation's history. The archivist
should work in close cooperation with those creating
records, as well as with the pastor, Congregation Council
and archives committee.

If a congregation is the result of a merger or
consolidation of congregations, the resulting congregation
becomes responsible for maintaining the records of all
predecessors. If a congregation disbands, however, the
records become the responsibility and property of the synod
and are deposited in the appropriate synodical/regional
archives.

Archival materials are those that hold historical and
evidential value for the congregation. Usually these
documents answer the "who, what, when, where and (if
possible) the why" of the history of a local parish. The
official papers, correspondence, and other parish records
created or received by the congregation and its officers and
organizations belong to the congregation. All such material
is entitled to archival preservation. The records should not
be thought of as the property of the pastor or any other
individual member who maintains or produces them. A policy
to clarify the issue of ownership of the congregational
records should be developed by the Congregation Council. If
records are donated to the archives from private sources, a
"Deed of Gift" should be created that assigns all
copyrights, as well as literary and property rights in the
materials, to the congregation.

4. The minutes of the meetings of the congregation,
Congregation Council, committees, and organizations.

5. An annual list of all the names of officers and
members of boards and committees.

6. All official correspondence (i.e. concerning
congregational, rather than personal, matters).

7. Copies of the reports of all the church's official
committees, commissions, societies, and organizations.

8. Copies of all calls extended to pastors and
appointments to teachers and other servants of the church
that are accepted by them. (Calls and appointments that
have been declined need not be preserved.)

9. Records of any disciplinary actions.

10. Printed materials including the Sunday bulletins,
congregational newsletters, letters to the council or
general membership, orders of service, and programs for
special events.

11. The records of parish, weekday, and Sunday
schools.

12. The non-current treasurers' records, such as
general ledgers and annual reports.

13. Copies of the deeds and descriptions of the church
properties, titles, leases, surveys, etc.

14. All contracts for the construction of
congregational buildings, and facilities, as well as
contracts negotiated for special services. All plans,
specifications, blueprints, and drawings should be
included.

15. Mortgages should be retained even after they have
been retired. It is advisable to use copies for
mortgage-burning ceremonies.

16. Photographs or other graphic depictions of the
congregation's building(s), pastors, organizations,
activities, and events.

B. Additional materials created by, for, or about the
congregation provide additional documentary evidence and
also should be preserved:

1. Source materials, such as original returns of
surveys or questionnaries.

2. Statistical and comparative summaries on finance,
attendance, and membership, particularly copies of
reports submitted to the synod office or ELCA units and
organizations.

3. Local newspaper articles or histories that include
information on the congregation.

4. Synod minutes that include parochial reports of the
congregation.

5. A chronological account of the major events and
activities of a congregation.

6. Unpublished studies, theses or dissertations about
the congregation by students or other researchers.

C. Supplemental information could be maintained, for
reference purposes, if space permits:

1. Histories of: the ELCA and predecessor church
bodies; related synods and their predecessors;
neighboring congregations; and ELCA colleges, seminaries,
and social service institutions closely associated with
the congregation.

2. Biographical information gathered from various
resources on persons from the congregation.

3. Museum pieces (such as carvings, stained-glass
windows, old vestments, and altarware) also should be
preserved, although congregations may need to be guided
by considerations of space in deciding what objects are
kept. Often if still usable, it is best to donate them to
a congregation in need of them, although records of such
gifts should be preserved.

Over the last several years, the oral history interview
has become a popular and useful resource for archives and
history. With the aid of recording devices, memoirs may be
preserved in audio or video form, supplementing or
complementing written sources.

The purpose of an oral history interview is, generally,
to clarify or fill in the gaps where written records are
either lacking or missing. An interview also may provide
candid comments and opinions not available in other sources.

An interview begins as a well-planned series of
questions, and is not an informal chat. It should focus on
an era, landmark person or event to be documented. The
interviewer should research the subjects to be covered to
reduce the need for time consuming clarifications. Any one
interview should not go on for more than an hour or two,
since both participants will tire if a session runs longer.

If at all possible, a written transcript of the interview
should be prepared. The interviewee should check the
transcription for details such as dates, the spelling of
names, and other details. Finally, both the interviewer and
interviewee should sign a donation agreement to make the
taped and transcribed interview property of the
congregation, including literary and copyrights.

In archives administration two major principles govern
the method of organizing materials: provenance and respects
du fonds.

Arrangement according to provenance means that the
material is organized according to the group or person that
created or originated the records. Therefore, within the
archives of a congregation, materials are arranged into what
are known as record groups, each representing a record
creating entity, such as the congregation as a whole, the
pastor, officers, Congregation Council, each committee, and
organization. Subgroups may be used for greater clarity. For
example, the record group, "Sunday School," might have
subgroups for the superintendent and each department,
nursery, primary, or youth. The organizational chart of the
congregation would be the best place to start when
establishing appropriate record groups for the archives.

Under each record group will be one or more series of
functionally related records or record series. Record series
are often identified by such general titles as:
correspondence, reports, minutes, and subject files. An
example in a typical congregation would be as follows:

Record Group: Church Council

Record Series: 1. Membership Lists

2. Minutes

3. Correspondence

4. Reports

Each record series is arranged in this manner at the time
records are received into the archives. An accession log
maintains the provenance, by recording who produced what
records, the inclusive dates and volume of the materials,
date received and the person responsible for the transfer of
materials to the archives.

The second archival principle, respects du fonds, or
retention of the original order of records, means preserving
the records in the order and filing scheme in which the
records were created. In other words, records should not be
reorganized alphabetically by subject, name, or any other
system. The original order must be maintained except in
cases where records are inaccessible due to the original
arrangement. When this happens, records should be rearranged
simply into record series by type (minutes, correspondence)
in chronological order, under the appropriate record group.

Once materials are arranged by record group and record
series, guides to the records, or finding aids, should be
prepared. Each record series has its own finding aid. Basic
to the finding aid is a folder by folder listing of
materials in the records series. Also included are brief
historical background notes and a description that
highlights what cannot be easily understood by looking
through the folder listing.

Historical notes might include the starting date of the
group involved, name changes, function of the group and
major changes in its authority, objectives, or activities.
The description would indicate completeness of materials,
reasons for missing items, notes on arrangement
(alphabetical, chronological, etc.) and other information as
needed. The finding aid/guide could repeat the provenance
information recorded in the accession log and the name of
the person who processed the records and developed the
finding aid.

A. The archives should be located in a locked, fireproof
room, area, or filing cabinet that is least affected by
extremes of light, heat, dryness or humidity. The ideal
storage environment has a temperature of 67 degrees
Fahrenheit, plus or minus 2 degrees, with relative humidity
of 47% plus or minus 2 percent. If this ideal cannot be met,
an area that can maintain conditions close to these, with
minimal fluctuations is next best.

B. Archival materials should be placed into archival file
folders or envelopes made of acid-free paper. If open
shelves are being used, folders are then placed into
acid-free document cases available in various sizes to fit
standard letter and legal size paper, pamphlets and oversize
materials such as parish registers. The document cases add
protection from direct light and dirt. (Note: Acid free
folders are available from manufacturers who specialize in
archival products.)

C. When placing materials into folders and document
cases, all fastening devices -- metal paper clips and
staples, rubber bands, and string -- should be removed.

D. Materials should not be folded to fit into containers.
Oversize materials, such as blueprints, confirmation
photographs, and other large items should be stored flat if
at all possible. Map cases would be advisable if a large
number of such items need preservation.

E. Water, chemical sprays, all adhesives and lamination
cause irrevocable damage to paper and photographs. Cleaning
or repair of documents requires special techniques.
Restoration work should only be undertaken by professionals.

F. Documents should not be marked with permanent ink. If
any marks are made for identification purposes, pencils
should be used.

G. Photographs, negatives, slides, audio and video
recordings and artifacts should all be filed separately from
paper documents. Negatives should be stored separately from
associated prints.

H. If scrapbooks are to be assembled for anniversaries or
other historical observances, be aware that most adhesives
would permanently damage original documents and photographs.
A scrapbook cannot be considered a device to preserve
permanently materials, but rather a memento for a specific
occasion. Use only copies to compile a scrapbook.

I. Records should be inspected periodically for
atmospheric and vermin damage, and adequate safeguards and
protective measures should be taken if evidence of such
damage is found.

J. Normally vital records such as minutes, membership
records and ministerial acts should not be removed from the
church premises, except for restoration or microfilming. In
some cases, an ELCA synodical/regional archives may be
willing to store these records for congregations.

Professional archivists have just begun to tackle the
problem of preservation and accessibility of electronic or
machine readable records. Currently, common electronic
record storage media, that is, computer tapes and disks, are
susceptible to damage and cannot be considered permanent.
New computer technologies may bring some answers to
long-term archival needs. But new technologies may create
another problem, which is accessibility of records with
outdated or absent software or hardware. Therefore, to
maintain records in an electronic form, a commitment must be
made to update continually and convert all records to the
newest formats, disks or tapes

The short-term answer to storage of electronic records is
to store paper copies as back up for all correspondence,
reports, and minutes. Parish membership lists and other data
that are updated often should be printed and dated
regularly. Strict policies and procedures to preserve these
records, including adequate funding, is needed. For both
long- and short-term storage, back-up copies should be made
regularly and stored separately, in a separate building, if
at all possible. Data loss can occur for a variety of
reasons during active use or in storage. Adequate back up
will ensure that a high percentage of data can be restored
for current activities.

When records are deteriorating and further damage results
from using them, a cost-effective and accepted method of
preserving the information, if not the actual paper, is
microfilming.

Ensuring that archival quality film is produced is
extremely important and complicated. Most service bureaus do
not do this kind of filming, and it is recommended that
congregations seek outside assistance before entering into
such a project.

Archival quality microfilm must have each of three
elements. First is appropriate preparation before filming so
that materials are filmed in a logical sequence with
introductory title and contents pages at the front of the
film, and frequent "targets" to signal the start of a new
record series, volume, or folder thereafter. Second, the
film used should be silver based and the filmer should test
for contrast, density, and clarity, according to American
National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards. Third, the
original negative should be stored under environmentally
controlled conditions and should be used only to make
additional copies. Only positive copies should be used for
reference purposes.

This is a brief introduction to microfilming and should
not be considered a complete guide. Further information and
assistance is available from the churchwide archives or from
your synodical/regional archives. The ELCA churchwide
archives also is able to store the original negatives of
microfilm for congregations who choose to have their records
microfilmed. Synodical/regional archives may also offer this
service to congregations.

A. Congregational archivists should report significant
historical events to the synod archivist or other
appropriate office and deposit copies of some materials with
the archivist. Among the items to be deposited in the synod
archives are:

1. Printed or mimeographed histories of the
congregation, or copies of manuscript histories, if
available.

2. Special orders of service prepared for ordinations,
installations, groundbreakings, dedications,
re-dedications, and anniversaries.

B. The ELCA Archives in Chicago is collecting
congregational histories, special bulletins, biographical
information, photographs and positive copies of
congregational records on microfilm. Other items are
accepted on a selective basis.

C. Your state historical society is interested in
obtaining printed congregational histories and positive
copies of congregational records on microfilm.

D. Pastors may desire to keep personal copies of some of
the materials described above. They should be allowed to do
so, provided original copies are retained in church files.

Anyone with a legitimate purpose should be permitted to
use the archives. Discretion should be exercised, however,
where personal information is involved. Policies on use,
with recommendations and and consultation of the
congregation's archivist or archives committee, should be
established by the Congregation Council. If records are
searched, the person doing so should use the documents under
supervision, copying what information is needed, but not
removing ledgers, files or individual documents from the
church office or archives. Researchers must be cautioned
that the copyright to both unpublished and printed materials
in the archives is owned by the congregation. Whenever
records are cited in published works, credit and
congregational ownership should be indicated.

If documents are to be exhibited in anniversary displays
or for other celebrations, materials should be placed in a
location safe from theft or vandalism. No writing or
adhesives should be applied to the documents. Mats used to
frame photographs may be used to secure documents for
viewing. Original documents should not be left on display
indefinitely, since the display area will probably not be in
an environmentally controlled area.

This publication is a revision and expansion of a guide
originally prepared in 1981 by Pastor Joel W. Lundeen,
former Lutheran Church in America associate archivist, who
cited assistance by Dr. Henry G. Waltmann, the late
archivist of the LCA's Indiana-Kentucky Synod, and Dr.
August R. Suelflow, director of the Concordia Historical
Institute of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.